


Shots are Good for the Heart

by constellations (allyoop)



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Body Shots, Cute, Cute Ending, Drinking, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Happy Ending, Literally the cutest thing I've written, M/M, Poor Life Choices, Romance, Romantic Friendship, Schmoop, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-14
Updated: 2014-02-14
Packaged: 2018-01-12 09:09:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1184452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allyoop/pseuds/constellations
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Two words: BODY SHOTS</p><p>Or: the fic where two idiots get drunk and realize some things about L-O-V-E</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shots are Good for the Heart

**Author's Note:**

  * For [redford](https://archiveofourown.org/users/redford/gifts).



Jim found himself draped horizontally across Bones in their usual Friday night stance.

“You know I have a perfectly good couch.”

“Couch isn’t warm. Or squishy.” He poked at Bones’ stomach.

“Don’t insult me or I’ll kick you out, _idiot_.”

“You wont.”

He scowled but Jim was right. He sighed and tried a different tactic. “I’m studyin’. But I can’t do that too well with a deadweight across my lap and covering my padd.” He stifled an embarrassing giggle as Jim squirmed against him, brushing his ticklish sides. 

“It’s _Friday_ , Bones, and this is sad lonely behavior. I’m trying to _help_ you. Let’s get out; let’s go drinking!”

“You’re already drunk off your ass. I’m not gonna enable you; it only ends in puke or pain.”

“Well good thing I’m _best friends_ with a doctor.”

He groaned, hearing the smile in Jim’s words. “Don’t you dare-“

“C’mon Bones, my very best friend. Let’s do friendly things together and share some friendly drinks ‘cause we’re _best friends._ ”

Bones deeply regretted his off-hand admittance to Jim earlier that week. It must have been a momentary bout of insanity (or perhaps the beginning of a deadly space fever) that made him truthfully call Jim his very best friend.  He accidentally gave him ammo that Jim was now gleefully exploiting. He rolled over and up, pinning Bones more against the bed. Jim looked at him with a puppy-dog expression.

“ _Bonesy_. Come with me.”

“Tomorrow.”

Jim did a little happy dance while still horizontal, knocking the air out of Bones.

“Dammit, Jim!” He coughed. “Now get out of my bed!”

 

*

 

“This place is great!”

“What?”

Jim half-leaned, half-crashed into Bones’ shoulder, yelling over the thumping music into his ear. “I said, _this place is really great!_ ”

“Yeah!” Bones nodded enthusiastically, making his world shake more than it already was. This was the third or fourth place they’ve gone tonight and, including the new shots Jim handed him, he was one or two (or three) drinks past tipsy. Jim knocked his drink back and elbowed Bones.

“Look over there. Girls night out?” He gestured to where a trio of girls with colorful drinks was chatting at the bar.

“Bachelorette party maybe?”

“I have an idea.” Bones started to protest but Jim was already dragging them towards the bar. He sensed that this was a _really_ bad idea since whenever Jim got that twinkle in his eye it never ended well.

 

*

 

He should have protested louder.

Instead Bones found himself with his shirt missing and several pairs of hands pushing him on top of a too-small table. Jim’s head popped into his line of sight.

“Lucky you!” He sprinkled a line of salt down Bones’ abs, making him wriggle at the light touch. “Ladies want you to go first.”

“Aren’t we doin’ this backwards?”

“You getting shy on me Bones?” Jim shoved a lime wedge into his mouth, shutting him up. “You look good like this, so stop talking and let Chloe get at you.” A redhead appeared next to Jim, giggling and waving. He leaned back down, whispering. “C’mon Bones, she’s getting married. Give her one last _taste_ of the wild side.” Jim waggled his eyebrows and nudged the girl forward.

She bent over and licked a stripe of salt up, trying to look seductively at Bones while she did, but the gesture failed spectacularly. He had too many drinks in his body to maintain any sort of self-control. Bones was so unfortunately ticklish and Chloe’s skimming touches were too much for him to ignore. He burst into full-body giggles, spilling the shot that had been so precariously balanced on his navel, and involuntarily grabbing his stomach with his laughter. So of course he accidentally thwacked Chloe, who bumped into the table, which sent both of them toppling to the ground in a terrible crunch. Bones was still giggling like a maniac, weeks of suppressed tickles seemingly bursting out at once, but he still heard Chloe moaning in pain through his chuckles.

“I’m a doctor; I can fix that.”

 

*

 

“Look at it this way; it’s a great story to tell your grandkids.”

“I hate you.”

“No you don’t.”

All the laughter was gone and Bones was scowling at his reflection as he tried to wash the spilled tequila and salt off his body. “I don’t hate you, but I really _really_ don’t like you right now.”

Jim hugged him tightly from behind, pinning his arms to his sides, and plopped his chin onto Bones’ shoulder. “That means you like me _some_ of the time, and that is true _best friendship_.”

“I’m never going to live that down.”

He shook his head, grinning. “I will never let it die.” Jim lightly tapped his head against Bones, still wrapped around him. “You’re my best friend too, you know. Bestest friend and sometimes roommate.”

“We’re not _roommates_ ; you just have a horrible habit of crashing in my dorm room without permission.”

“ _Fine_ ; we’re habitual roommates and not technical ones. Still best friends though. Sometimes I wish you were hot and a girl and I would totally marry you.”

Bones laughed at Jim’s words, clearly still drunk. “What are you talkin’ about? That’s been legal for centuries. And what’ya mean I’m not hot? You’re the one that took my shirt off and got all excited.”

“I mean, yeah you’re _really_ hot. Like crazy attractive, but not hookup-at-a-bar-never-call-again hot. You’re the sum of your parts; all your frowny, genius, southern gentleman with a giant heart, parts.”

Jim still had him pinned with the hug and Bones really wished he could move. It may have been the shots, but suddenly he felt warmed from the inside out and he wanted Jim to feel it too. “I’m not the genius. Have you looked at yourself lately, Mr. Top-of-the-Class?”

“Shut up Bones. You’re a doctor. You fix things and you help people. That’s always genius in my book.”

So uh…” Bones felt like they had walked and walked and found themselves at the edge of a cliff without ever knowing they were going there. He felt his breath coming harder and fought to keep calm so that Jim wouldn’t feel it. But something in the atmosphere slipped and Jim let go, backing away a little sheepishly.  Bones tried to recover. “So what were you saying about my _parts_?”

Jim laughed, looking relieved. “Your hotness isn’t just your body, which if I may say, is a solid ten out of ten and you should really go shirtless more often.”

“ _Jim._ ”

“Every little thing I learn about you; the way you like your pancakes, how your metaphors get more colorful the angrier you are, the way you smile when you’re holding a good cup of tea and you think no one is looking… I dunno, Bones. The people who see you as a single star are really missing out; you’re a whole constellation of beauty.”

Jim was drunk, Bones told himself. He’s always been prone to strange conversations about poetry or philosophy when he was drunk. Usually they would be spread out on Bones’ bed, Jim against his side just talking and talking. And Bones would fall asleep to his voice, not hearing words but loving the way they sounded on Jim’s lips. And the way Jim’s breathing set a pace that Bones’ sleeping heart would follow and-

_Oh._

_Oh wow._

Bones was surprised he hadn’t recognized it, since he had felt this once before. He turned to face Jim rather than just his reflection and took a step forward, reclosing the distance between them. “So why do I have to be a girl?”

Jim looked confused for a second, but quickly regained his bearings. “Because Jim Kirk likes girls. I kiss girls, I fuck girls. Everyone sees me with girls.”

“Why do I sense a mighty ‘but’ at the end of that sentence?”

“But I like _you_. You’re my best friend and I really like you but you’re my _best friend_ and also hot, which is really unfair, but you’re still by best friend and-“

“Jim, stop. You’re going in circles.”

“I always feel like I’m going in circles.”

Bones reached out and cupped Jim’s jaw in both his hands, holding him steady. “You still feel like you’re spinning?”

“Not anymore.”

He leaned in, hovering just above Jim’s lips, waiting.

“You’re my ground, Bones. You’re my constant, my rock.”

“And you’re my sky, helping me look up and dare to dream.”

“ _Fuck_. We’re a couple of saps, aren’t we?”

He laughed and kissed Jim as an answer. It was everything he expected; warm and familiar, like they’ve done this before. Bones pulled Jim closer, deepening the kiss. Jim ran his hands slowly up his bare back, and grew acutely aware of how shirtless he was and how cold Jim’s hands felt in the open air of the restroom. Jim’s hands traced a path to his side and Bones couldn’t help but giggle into the kiss. Jim took a step back, laughing as well.

“You’re unbelievable.”

“I’m a ticklish drunk. You got no one to blame but yourself, Jim; you handed me most of those shots.”

"Shots are good for your heart. Doctors agree."

"You're not a doctor, Jim"

He pressed himself back against Bones, his smile just a blur this close in his vision. "No, but _you_ agree. Right, Bones?"

"Mmm… Well, shots do get me all giggly and warm, which you like."

"I do like. Although the ticklish thing I could do with less."

"I just need to build up resistance. That means practice."

Jim's eyes lit up. "Practice? Oh yeah, lots and lots and lots of practice. Let’s start that right now."

 

**Author's Note:**

> Posted on Valentine's day on purpose <3 My little gift to all of you. Thanks for reading!
> 
> Comments and kudos appreciated :)


End file.
